Almost everything that interests preschool children has to do with their bodies. They run, balance, jump, carry heavy stones, throw things. I’ve always wanted to write about the years when we are very close to the ground and make use of sticks, mud and water. It’s so easy for us adults to forget those initial tactile and physical delights. And we don’t always understand how important this is in helping children develop their abilities.

I grew up over a movie theatre. All of our games were influenced by the cartoons and that special quality that was for real but still make-believe. Children are always so close to the boundary between saga and reality. Vina Vina is one of these types. He is always at the edge of reality.
For the illustrations, I looked for someone who ‘understood sticks’. I found Lotta Geffenblad who, besides being a major artistic talent, also has a real understanding of what goes on in the minds of young children. She creates Vina Vina’s world little by little, as I write new stories.